Food photography a healthy habit for some

Some people cannot resist sharing their main course on social media, but according to a new study at UW, those snap-happy diners might be developing healthier habits.

Author:
Ted Land

Published:
4:31 PM PDT May 3, 2017

Updated:
5:59 PM PDT May 3, 2017

Some people cannot resist sharing their main course on social media, but according to a new study at the University of Washington, those snap-happy diners might be developing healthier habits.

UW researchers Christina Chung and Sean Munson recently studied a group of Instagrammers who consistently post pictures of what they're eating.

They found that taking photos of food helped some people improve their methods of keeping track of everything they eat in a day. That can be a big help when you're trying not to overeat, the study found.

“It’s not always going to be a complete record, but it’s good enough that you can get an overview,” Munson said.

Some of the Instagrammers were able to develop communities of other eaters who encouraged one another to stick to healthy habits.

“Sometimes it's hard for you to know what to eat or what you can cook, so they looked at other people who have similar goals and were inspired by their recipes,” Chung said.

The researchers say Instagram worked better for some people than just using a journal. They hope their findings will help build tools for people to track their diets, and then share that info with their doctors, nutritionists, or dieticians.